cor·pus /'kôrpəs/
n. pl. cor·po·ra (-pr-)
1. A large collection of writings of a specific kind or on a specific subject.
2. A collection of writings or recorded remarks used for linguistic analysis.
3. The main part of a bodily structure or organ.
//Reviews of art. Art and language. Art and the body.

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

“My singular medical and psychological history has informed
who and what I am. […] It is not all of me though it has left a lasting
impression on my life and informs the person I am today.”

Victoria Canton was born intersex, with the chromosomes XXY.
Raised as a male, she was finally recognised as female in July 2009, aged 39.
Now a professional artist, her large scale, brightly coloured, abstracted
paintings show figures reclining on sofas in the typical poses of female nudes
throughout art history. Alongside their flowing locks and ample breasts, however,
they also have penises – not exactly something you would expect of Manet’s ‘Olympia’,
no matter how much of a challenge to artistic circles the painter wished to
pose at the time!

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About Me

Art writer and editor with background as an academic linguist. Assistant Editor at Art Quarterly (Art Fund) and Web Editor for AICA. Former Deputy Editor at State media and Arts Editor at DIVA magazine. Regular contributor to Studio International, Photomonitor, Elephant and the Mail on Sunday. Member of the NUJ, WiJ and AICA. NCTJ qualified.